, 1887-04-09
TIE SHOTGUN GUARD.
A CONVERSATION RELATIVE TO THE
EXPLOITS OF HlGHWAYMEN.

GNTGOIlo VT Tl1FIWAf MIFt
How Road Agents Attack n stngo-rry-
Ing to tho Nerves of tho G~unri-Lot-
tiers of warning-A Case Of Total Col
lapse.
When the treasure box amt in on the
Deadwood stage the other day, the men,
bers Of the shotgun guard carried 1t into
the express car and sat down by its side.
There were three Of them. The box had
$500 0 in bullion in it, and AZ usual a
crowd assembled to look at it and at the
men having it in charge. AS there was
an hour before the train would start, the
crowd and the guard fell into q conversa-
ton relative to train and stage robberies.
After some Of the exploits of highwaymen
on the Hills road had been referred to,
Bill Dunn, one Of the shotgun men, said:
81 see TINT there Is a heap of talk In the
papers about the cowardice of men who
happen to be mixed up In tussles with the
agents. Now, this Is all very funny whom
you are 1000 miles away from thom and
know there isn't q Winchester within
four miles of you but the thing takes on
q different aspect when you are within
range. l never was in a hold up but
once, but I have seen more than one time
when l felt ms though | would like to get
nut and walk and let the box 20. The
fact that you have SO much money in your
keeping Is OF itself enough to make you
nervous in q country like this. AS a rule
when agents attack u treasure coach or q
train they nre OH you before you know 1t.
Then you can fight or die, just as you
please. The times that make your shirt
collar wilt arc when you nave reason to
believe that you aro to be attacked and
yet arc not attacked.
LETTERS OF WARNING.
when | carried a gun on the Sidney
route there was q month at one time that
l never left Deadwood without having re-
ceived q letter notifying me that / was to
be held up on that trip. Sometimes l got
the warning through the the postofice,
once 1 received 1t in Sidney, and several
times it was pushed under my door at my
boarding house when l was asleep. In
some of the letters the writer assumed to
be tho robber, and he always wound up
his warning with the words: so look out,
III have the box, and 1 may have you
Others Of them, though they were all
written in the same hand, camo ostensibly
from others parties, who pretended to
have only my interest at heart? OF cocr3e
l knew that that was a dangerous road,
and 1t was my business to shoot and be
shot; but after this sort of thing had been
kept up for q fortnight or so | began to
get nervous. l foun that every time l
started 1t took n bigger drink to get my
nerves in condition, ard on inquiring the
value of the box l cane to feel q sort of
relief when it was comparatively small.
The thing was wearing on me, and at last
l got SO / thought / could tell how
strangers out here, who came west with
exaggerated ideas of the dangers to DO en-
| .CnIIntQrpl falt whqD fhau f0rn1 fhoir
fears realized. Now, I'll tell you some
thing that was never told yet.
After l had been getting these warn
fngs for about three or four weeks l left
Deadwood one day with a box worth
5000, 900. AS soon as 1 heard the value o.
the bullion tho perspiration came out on
me, for, | thought to myself, these cut
Threats always know when there is q big
treasure aboard, and this is their meat.
1t made mo mad to find myself so nervous,
because tho fact is l never yet ran, and l
don't think I ever will, and l walked
around a little while trying to get my
grip. The fact Of the matter was l wasn't
well. TIN work had been heavy, and my
anxiety had upset me. But when it came
time to start | put on a reckless air, and
getting up in front with tho driver I babe
tho boys good-by and WI drove off.
TOTAL COLLAPSE.
"Thc roads were heavy, and before we
reached the first station, where we were
to pass the night, it was dark. Some of
you may know what darkness in western
Nebraska was in those days. We had
about three miles to travel before hauling
up for the night, and Parker, the driver,
and | were straining our eyes to sec the
light, when, with II sudden yell at the
horses he pulled them up IN their launches
and Chrfn1vn1 In y, aO-. tNNTlnotf. tl-&Ct
Well, now, at tho instant that ho first
yelled there was n crack like q rifle, and I
heard 1t as well as he. 1t may seem
highly ridiculous, and SO it was, but tho
minute that no shrieked / just dropped Off
tho coach like q log, shotgun md all.
How 1t happened I cannot tell to this day.
1t was y total collapse. 1 had no power
over myself, and, what Is more, when /
found myself in the mud almost under
the horses heels I could not rise. / am
free to admit that If an agent had shown
up just then l would have caved. He
could have anything that he wanted.
1.-The driver cot down after q little and
helped me up. By that time no was con-
WINGED that there were no robbers around,
n on reassuring mo we went back q
little ways and found that tile report
which we had heard had come from tho
breaking Of q dry limb over which the
coach had run. l knew that II that thing
got out it would ruin me in tho business,
ind l fixed it up with the driver so that
we agreed to say nothing about it. After
that "Trip | took O rest for q few days, and
when l felt better l went pack to work,
and l haven't fallen of from anything
since. Since then, also, l have made 1t a
point never to think much about agents.
1t don't do you any good, and it may do
you harm. And that's why | never make
any remarks when l hear Of n tenderfoot
in Z hold-up rushing round and insisting
that the agent shall take some things
which he never asks for. lie simply can
not control himself. He has fallen off the
box, SO to speak, and needs rest and rcop-
peration Dakota Cor. New York Sun.
Bats In the Mammoth Cave
Iookfnp nm Mt thc sides Of the preat